How is Congress dealing with the trust fund’s budget and its obligations to state transportation projects?
Rep. Blumenauer: We have been deeply concerned that for the last year and a half there has been a precipitous drop in the revenues that the federal government collects in its Highway Trust Fund. For the first time in history it has gone into deficit—it has not had enough money to reach its current obligations. We had to transfer money in the last Congress and, indeed, Congress will have to do it again before Labor Day of this year to avoid canceling obligations that states are relying upon. This is, in part, a reduction in the gallons of gasoline and diesel that are consumed because of the spike in prices and the reduction in industrial demand. It started, however, with a reduction in the excise tax on trucks and equipment that go into the fund. We are on a path now to collect about $50 billion less in the next six years than we collected during the last six years. It’s less than $230 billion. A program that would be merely adjusted for inflation would require in the neighborhood of $3
Related Questions
- The states Transportation Trust Fund faces a $2.7 billion gap between revenues and spending needed to complete needed projects by 2012. How should the state address this problem?
- Is the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund the only resource for state funding of environment and natural resource projects?
- What kind of federal and state funds are available for transportation projects?
